Looking to buy a Caterham 420R coming from Exige 410
Discussion
Gibbo205 said:
That looks stunning! Is that Ultra Violet, or a custom purple? Any more picture and the bucket seats yours has is that the default option on configurator?
It's Ultra Violet from the configurator, here's a couple more pics - not really got any of the seats. They’re the padded Carbon Fibre seats, price has gone up since I ordered! 1k on the configurator now.. blimey
Edited by Deadbod on Sunday 29th January 18:52
I signed on the dotted line for a 420R at Oakmere yesterday. Currently looking at 11 months for kit delivery.
I was talked out of the carbon seats and opted for the leather seats, but I do want to try the carbon heated tillets before I have to finalise the spec.
I went SV chasis in the end after test driving both S3 & SV back to back, The S3 was just too snug in the shoulders for touring. I also stuck with the 15" wheels as I was loath to pay then £400 to switch to a cheaper wheel (Cheaper as a separate part anyway)! I may switch to 13" afterwards.
I was talked out of the carbon seats and opted for the leather seats, but I do want to try the carbon heated tillets before I have to finalise the spec.
I went SV chasis in the end after test driving both S3 & SV back to back, The S3 was just too snug in the shoulders for touring. I also stuck with the 15" wheels as I was loath to pay then £400 to switch to a cheaper wheel (Cheaper as a separate part anyway)! I may switch to 13" afterwards.
Edited by Chuffy on Thursday 23 February 10:19
Well done!
Although I’ve not bought a car from them, Oakmere did some work on my previous Caterham & they were great, highly recommended.
I was very tempted by the carbon seats when I bought my 420R four years ago, but I ended up with leather ones as my wife found the carbon ones uncomfortable. I like the leather seats though. I drove the car to Italy last September & found them very comfortable, even doing long distances each day.
I’m sure 13 inch wheels used to be the default on R spec cars, it does seem cheeky that you have to pay £400 for the privilege these days.
That said, personally, I think the difference in the way the cars drive on 13 inch wheels tends to be overstated & I think the 15 inch Orcus wheels suit SVs very well.
Try to enjoy the anticipation!
Although I’ve not bought a car from them, Oakmere did some work on my previous Caterham & they were great, highly recommended.
I was very tempted by the carbon seats when I bought my 420R four years ago, but I ended up with leather ones as my wife found the carbon ones uncomfortable. I like the leather seats though. I drove the car to Italy last September & found them very comfortable, even doing long distances each day.
I’m sure 13 inch wheels used to be the default on R spec cars, it does seem cheeky that you have to pay £400 for the privilege these days.
That said, personally, I think the difference in the way the cars drive on 13 inch wheels tends to be overstated & I think the 15 inch Orcus wheels suit SVs very well.
Try to enjoy the anticipation!
Hi there
So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
I’ve also drove cars with leather seats, basic tillet buckets and now own a car with carbon padded buckets, my views are:
Tillet buckets: Too tight and uncomfortable for me, also cold.
Padded buckets: perfect fit and comfortable, also not cold and look awesome.
Leather seats: comfortable but don’t hold you too well.
Worth sitting in them all!
So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
I’ve also drove cars with leather seats, basic tillet buckets and now own a car with carbon padded buckets, my views are:
Tillet buckets: Too tight and uncomfortable for me, also cold.
Padded buckets: perfect fit and comfortable, also not cold and look awesome.
Leather seats: comfortable but don’t hold you too well.
Worth sitting in them all!
Gibbo205 said:
Hi there
So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
I’ve also drove cars with leather seats, basic tillet buckets and now own a car with carbon padded buckets, my views are:
Tillet buckets: Too tight and uncomfortable for me, also cold.
Padded buckets: perfect fit and comfortable, also not cold and look awesome.
Leather seats: comfortable but don’t hold you too well.
Worth sitting in them all!
Good buy, looks great - you must be chuffed and excited! Also, with Spring round the corner that's great timing!So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
I’ve also drove cars with leather seats, basic tillet buckets and now own a car with carbon padded buckets, my views are:
Tillet buckets: Too tight and uncomfortable for me, also cold.
Padded buckets: perfect fit and comfortable, also not cold and look awesome.
Leather seats: comfortable but don’t hold you too well.
Worth sitting in them all!
Track days booked yet?
There are frequently cars up for sale with very low miles, often only around 700. Do you know why the seller was selling with only 900 miles under their belt? I'm just super curious!
Gibbo205 said:
Hi there
So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
Worth sitting in them all!
Car looks superb - great colour -congrats.So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
Worth sitting in them all!
I thought Caterhams were supposed to be depreciation proof though ?!
Gibbo205 said:
Hi there
So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
I’ve also drove cars with leather seats, basic tillet buckets and now own a car with carbon padded buckets, my views are:
Tillet buckets: Too tight and uncomfortable for me, also cold.
Padded buckets: perfect fit and comfortable, also not cold and look awesome.
Leather seats: comfortable but don’t hold you too well.
Worth sitting in them all!
Congratulations, looks like you got a bargain there and I can completely understand your choice. So I’m now proud owner of a 420R purchased privately so saved a huge chunk of money, as I’ve paid £39,800 for a 2022 car with 900 miles. 420R S3, padded carbon buckets, lowered floors, heater, trackday exhaust, and loads of other extras totalling £54,000 on configurator and I love the colour.
I’ve also drove cars with leather seats, basic tillet buckets and now own a car with carbon padded buckets, my views are:
Tillet buckets: Too tight and uncomfortable for me, also cold.
Padded buckets: perfect fit and comfortable, also not cold and look awesome.
Leather seats: comfortable but don’t hold you too well.
Worth sitting in them all!
I'm going to be impatiently waiting 11 months, but the building is half the reason I'm getting a Caterham, so I'm stuck really.
Your views on the seats matches what I've read elsewhere, also what I have experienced with the leather seats, especially in an SV. In an S3 I think it's snug enough to not need the extra hold from the seats, but in the SV I would want a little more support than the leather seats I test drove, although the car I test drove didn't have a harness and was a standard seat belt. I was told that with the harness you don't need the seat support so much.
I also believe that the standard Tillets and the leather seats come in two widths for S3 & SV, but the padded buckets only come in one width and are the same in S3 and SV.
The challenge, certainly at oakmere is that everything in stock had leather seats, even the 620S. I'll be either popping to silverstone or seeking out others to sit in before I confirm the spec.
Chuffy said:
Congratulations, looks like you got a bargain there and I can completely understand your choice.
I'm going to be impatiently waiting 11 months, but the building is half the reason I'm getting a Caterham, so I'm stuck really.
Your views on the seats matches what I've read elsewhere, also what I have experienced with the leather seats, especially in an SV. In an S3 I think it's snug enough to not need the extra hold from the seats, but in the SV I would want a little more support than the leather seats I test drove, although the car I test drove didn't have a harness and was a standard seat belt. I was told that with the harness you don't need the seat support so much.
I also believe that the standard Tillets and the leather seats come in two widths for S3 & SV, but the padded buckets only come in one width and are the same in S3 and SV.
The challenge, certainly at oakmere is that everything in stock had leather seats, even the 620S. I'll be either popping to silverstone or seeking out others to sit in before I confirm the spec.
Get to a Caterham meet, am sure owners would let you sit in the cars.I'm going to be impatiently waiting 11 months, but the building is half the reason I'm getting a Caterham, so I'm stuck really.
Your views on the seats matches what I've read elsewhere, also what I have experienced with the leather seats, especially in an SV. In an S3 I think it's snug enough to not need the extra hold from the seats, but in the SV I would want a little more support than the leather seats I test drove, although the car I test drove didn't have a harness and was a standard seat belt. I was told that with the harness you don't need the seat support so much.
I also believe that the standard Tillets and the leather seats come in two widths for S3 & SV, but the padded buckets only come in one width and are the same in S3 and SV.
The challenge, certainly at oakmere is that everything in stock had leather seats, even the 620S. I'll be either popping to silverstone or seeking out others to sit in before I confirm the spec.
For me tillets are the most uncomfortable, plus no padding means you get a cold bottom too.
Leather seats are very comfy, perfect for road.
Padded buckets also comfy for road with great hold, you can also option to have them heated as well.
Any experiences or R vs S trim?
I had a 620R with full sequential box a few years back and found it too extreme for the road, and too fast on track- being so much faster than everything else can be quite dull. I’m thinking the 420 could be the sweet spot, but want something I can have fun in, not chase lap times. Occasional road and track use, something to slide around in!
I had a 620R with full sequential box a few years back and found it too extreme for the road, and too fast on track- being so much faster than everything else can be quite dull. I’m thinking the 420 could be the sweet spot, but want something I can have fun in, not chase lap times. Occasional road and track use, something to slide around in!
Edited by xbowdan on Monday 27th February 08:36
KnifeySpoony said:
Be sure to give your follow up thoughts on 7 vs Exige driving experience...
Would also like to hear this. Caterham looks ace Gibbo!I still don’t know if I made the right decision going Exige, love to try a Caterham/ atom but I’d lose to much money selling my Exige so soon I think.
keo said:
Would also like to hear this. Caterham looks ace Gibbo!
I still don’t know if I made the right decision going Exige, love to try a Caterham/ atom but I’d lose to much money selling my Exige so soon I think.
I’ve gone from a Caterham to 20th Anniversary Exige.I still don’t know if I made the right decision going Exige, love to try a Caterham/ atom but I’d lose to much money selling my Exige so soon I think.
In my opinion the Caterham is better for the pure driving experience. However, I’d say the Exige is about as close as you could get for a ‘normal’ car, with the added extra practicality. In an ideal world if you have the funds and garage space I’d have both.
skircoatshed said:
I’ve gone from a Caterham to 20th Anniversary Exige.
In my opinion the Caterham is better for the pure driving experience. However, I’d say the Exige is about as close as you could get for a ‘normal’ car, with the added extra practicality. In an ideal world if you have the funds and garage space I’d have both.
That was another reason the Exige is practical and me and the Mrs can go away for a long weekend and use it etc. couldn’t get her in a Caterham for long but she loves the Lotus. Even fell asleep on our last long journey. In my opinion the Caterham is better for the pure driving experience. However, I’d say the Exige is about as close as you could get for a ‘normal’ car, with the added extra practicality. In an ideal world if you have the funds and garage space I’d have both.
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